LightWedge NightVision LED Booklight :: Education by Design Store

Customer Reviews

Red LED light may not be bright enough for you.

2008-03-29
This device may not be bright enough for you if you read older paperbacks. It all depends on the size of the print and how yellow the page is. It's no problem if you read hardbacks.

Another thing to know is when the light lays next to the page, it greys out the view a bit. It's like you can see the back of the page and the letters bleed through. This is easily fixed by keeping the light raised slightly above the page. However it can be awkward to hold the rather bulky booklight slightly above the page with a finger, especially if it's an easy read and you're flipping pages. It can take some dexterity to use this. I have a couple of clear bumps that are used in cabinets to keep them from slamming. A couple of those could do the trick.

There are two settings on the light, probably bright enough and not bright enough. There are two LED lights inside and it would have been better to have three. I slightly increased the light output by lining the edge with tin-foil and clear tape. A clear light might be more effective than red.

The last thing to know it that the surface will scratch and even new there were a few minor imperfections in the plastic glass.

Overall though, it is a very good product. I'm glad it uses regular inexpensive AA batteries. I wish it had a soft cloth cover or plastic cover to protect it. I give it 4 stars but it should probably be 5 because in spite of the minor drawbacks, I haven't found a better booklight.

Bought it, Used it, Thought about it for a while...Love it!

2008-03-28
I am a huge reader and a night owl and especially love to read while my 4 year old is long asleep and so is my husband. In the past I've tried many different book lights always finding either they didn't light up the page well enough, were too bright, would break very easily or had very intrusive attachments. Then the LightWedge. Nightvision Red was the first LightWedge I had tried. I actually bought it for my husband who heard about it and just didn't get around to buying it for himself yet. He wanted it for when he goes on business trips and wants to read on the plane without disturbing others. Although he normally travels fairly frequently it had been sitting on his desk for about 2 weeks when one night I was just dying to try it. So, at about 2:00 AM I opened it up, got some batteries and there began my first experience with the LightWedge. As stated (rightly so) in various other reviews, the battery compartment is so poorly designed I actually cut my finger open trying to get the batteries in. Between being afraid to break it and at the same time trying to literally jam them in there, it was a nightmare, and the whole time I kept thinking I was doing something wrong (I was not). I understand why they chose the design they went with for the battery compartment but I find it hard to believe that the designers and manufacturers could not spare an extra 1/8 or 1/16th of an inch. Once I got the batteries in I was so relieved I couldn't wait to try it out on the new book I just got from Amazon. All that being said, the batteries WILL fit in there but be careful with your fingers and just force them in.

Let me start off by saying the Nightvision is INCREDIBLE, SO much more soothing on your eyes than the clear aka "original"(I now have both), it amazes me that most people choose the original over the Nightvision. I am hoping with fingers crossed they start making the Nightvision in the paperback size. OK, so basically you put the Lightwedge over the page you are reading and the entire page is illuminated but only that page, simple as that. No adjusting anything. The Nightvision Red is the only one that offers a button for brighter or softer which is great - to me that's a big plus over the Original (clear). Before I go on I just want to make sure that people are truly considering all aspects of this product and use it more than once before making a quick decision if they like it or not. I have no stake in LightWedge but really think it's a great product that I would love for other people to find enjoyment in as well. Of course this is the kind of product that some people will love, others won't but I believe if you really consider all of your options on the market today along with giving yourself some time to adjust to a "new way" AND also expect something nice not something perfect, you will be pleasantly surprised.

Back to using the Lightwedge, my first experience with it I was using this model which is the same size as what they refer to as the "Original" model BUT I was reading a paperback. Right there, I encountered my first problem because the LightWedge was considerably larger than my book...but I continued. The entire page was illuminated and there were some faint almost shadow like lines that the LightWedge gives off but nothing that even remotely bothered me. I am only addressing this because I've read other reviews mentioning this. Please note, I have a high regard for other people opinions and in no way mean to diminish someone else's experience but for ME (and trust me when I tell you I am EXTREMELY particular)it was a big nothing, I've experienced the same types of shadows with regular book lights, again nothing is perfect. Again, given I was using the Original Size (which is larger) on a paperback book it was more cumbersome than using the paperback sized LightWedge but still doable. So, I'm reading and turning the pages and realize wow I need to move the lightwedge every time I turn the page (again, I didn't know much about the LightWedge and this was my first experience plus it was 2:00 a.m.) and it was very distracting...at first. But, I kept on reading and then went to sleep. The next day I told my husband I used it and he said what do you think? I said "I'm not sure yet"...and I thought about it some more. The next day I used it again with the same book and then a different book and then I thought about it even more.

Since I read at night a lot and my husband was leaving on a trip WITH the Lightwedge I needed to really think about if this would work for me because one way or the other I would either have to buy my own or get a book light but quick. The conclusion I have come to is this...The Lightwedge is a new, very interesting and innovative way of reading at night. It's VERY different than a book light and very different from anything else I have tried. Once you use the LightWedge with the correct size book and get used to using it (this is key), it's really a fantastic item. Yes, it's a little annoying that you have to buy more than one LightWedge if you read different sized books (which I assume most people do) but the alternative is buying book light after book light. I can almost guarantee you most people are spending the same amount on the 2 LightWedges they would need vs. all the book lights they go through; again, not a perfect item, but a great alternative to a book light. I personally always found book lights to be a pain in the neck, it's always a whole procedure to get it set up correctly and then even with all the models out there, they each have their own set of problems. Personally when I'm reading in bed I'm laying down and tend to read on one side then roll over to my other side etc. with the LightWedge there is no "re-adjusting the light YAY!. With the LightWedge, you are definitely not disturbing anyone else when using it as it only illuminates the book you are reading. To me, this is very important, my husband works very hard, gets up very early and needs a good, undisturbed nights sleep to be on top of his game. With the LightWedge there is no more trying to adjust a light ever again which I personally love. Moving the lightwedge to turn the pages at first is distracting and annoying but with use it becomes completely natural that you don't even realize you are doing it.

All in all, with much forethought, I can confidently say I love the LightWedge and have just ordered another in the paperback size, I'm just hoping they start making the Nightvision Red in the paperback size and then I will give the one I just ordered to my husband who is thrilled with either one. I hope this review helps you in making a decision to either buy a LightWedge or not and especially the NightVision Red which I can not recommend highly enough. Whatever you may choose, happy reading!!

Poor Design

2008-02-25
Had to return this product. Battery compartment too short for batteries. Therefore, batteries could not be inserted and product was useless.

An Astronomer's Friend

2008-02-10
I was hesitant to buy this because of the cost, but once I got a gift certificate for Amazon, I figured I'd give it a whirl!
It works as well as I expected!!!

I use mine out when I'm observing with my telescopes. It does a great job of preserving my night vision while lighting my sky charts when I'm hunting down faint fuzzies!
It fits my Pocket Sky Atlas perfectly =-)

The only nit I've got is the fact that it doesn't like rechargeable batteries. It works fine on standard alkaline AAA batteries, but when I put in my NiHD batteries, it refuses to work.

NICE!

2008-01-28
This item comes as advertised and was exactly what I expected. The "boss" has used this item in the car on night time road trips helping to navigate and it works great! I don't get blinded by the reading light getting turned on in the car. I felt like I was in a submarine on red alert.

The red light is also not very noticeable in the bedroom compared to our other white book lights.

Recommended... highly...

To dim to read by

2008-07-23
We really enjoyed the original LightWedge and were buying a 2nd one. I picked the red, NightVision LightWedge LightWedge NightVision LED Booklight with the idea that it would be less obtrusive to my wife when she was trying to fall asleep. That worked as planned, but unfortunately it is also too dim for me to read by comfortably. It might work for reference material if night vision were important, but not for reading a story or similar text. I will buy a 2nd, original LightWedge LightWedge Original Book Light (Black). It isn't too obtrusive and is easy to read by.
--Scott

Works as Advertised.

2008-07-12
This works great. I really like it. I purchased the soft cover to store it in to prevent scratching.

Light works great, but construction/materials are poor

2008-06-03
So, like other reviewers, I had trouble getting the batteries into the battery compartment. The lid opened without problems, but sliding the batteries into the channel was tough. In fact, I cut myself on the terminal when I slid the first battery past. The plastic lens does scratch extremely easily. I ordered the soft case, and the only time the light is out of it is when I am reading. 3 nights of reading, so far, have produced some pretty decent scratches. I even succeeded in scratching the lens with my glasses cleaning cloth. Not quite sure how that happened, but I was rubbing off a finger print, and it left some scratches behind. Oh well. They are distracting, but I can still read with it. I've noticed that (obviously) red features on maps don't show up, so if you're using this on maps that have a lot of red, you might want to think again. I'm mostly using it to read black text on white paper (with a few graphs and plots here and there), so this works for me. Once I am done reading, I can still see around in the dark room, which was the goal of purchasing this light. So, for the most part, I'm happy. Although if I were the manufacturer, I'd be embarrassed to put my name on a device as poorly constructed as this one is. Especially for the price they are charging.

Perfect for astronomical star sky charts

2008-04-26
I am the director of an astronomical observatory (HGO). After using the red colored light wedge, I switched almost completely from red-lensed flashlights and other red led lighting systems to the wedge. The wedges can be wall mounted over a chart table for direct lighting or slipped behind computer generated sky charts - just keep the charts one sided. For reading sky reference books at the telescope and drawing galactic clusters (which is our main activity), the wedge is the best we've found so far for light. There are two light intensities - we start high and switch to low as our eye's adapt to darkness. The only problem is scratching the plastic lens. To prevent this, we slip the wedge into a paper sheet protector and attach it with a metal clip. It's a big improvement over red flashlights.

Perfect tool for astronomers

2008-04-06
This is the perfect tool for astronomers.It preserves your night vision ,it,s cleverly designed and illuminetes star charts books etc.better than anything I have used so far.